This is for the benefit of our readers who get the magazine edition of Cinema Retro. In issue #21 (the Clockwork Orange cover story), writer John Exshaw presents a painstakingly researched in-depth article on the making of Ken Russell's shocking 1971 film The Devils starring Vanessa Redgrave and Oliver Reed - and why it may never be released in DVD in America or the UK. (Warner Home Video had announced it but canceled the release.) The film caused such an outrage with its depiction of torture inflicted in the name of religion in 17th century France that the movie was severely edited in different ways for different countries in an attempt to sanitize it. In his article, Exshaw presents a detailed account of the various running times the film has experienced over the decades as well as catalogs known video releases throughout the world and their respective running times. (The film was originally available at one time on VHS) Various versions contain some of the scenes that were originally excised during the theatrical release. Now reader Christophe Martinel from France provides another missing link: a Japanese laser disc release from 1991 in pan-and-scan format. The running time of this version is 109 minutes.
Check out the latest issue of Cinema Retro for a full report on the controversies that still surround this provocative movie.We've even tracked down ultra rare photos of the censored scenes including the infamous sequence with naked nuns.